


Rocky Beginnings

by j_mcgay



Category: Adventure Time
Genre: Bubbline, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-21
Updated: 2019-07-13
Packaged: 2020-05-16 03:00:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,426
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19309267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/j_mcgay/pseuds/j_mcgay
Summary: Princess Bubblegum takes a trip down to the abandoned rock candy mines to investigate why her rock candy has been going missing.The story of how Princess Bubblegum and Marceline met for the first time!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a short little thing I wrote when I was thinking about how Princess Bubblegum and Marceline might have met all those hundreds of years ago. I don't really have any plans to continue it but if there's enough interest I might!
> 
> Follow me on twitter @mcgay_j
> 
> Edit: I'm continuing this and making it a multi-chap fic!

Princess Bubblegum glanced down at the scanner on her wrist. It still wasn’t picking up any heat signatures, but every so often the motion sensors she had set up would pick up some movement. For a few days now chunks of rock candy had been going missing from portions of the mines. She had set up some motion sensors and cameras to try to get to the bottom of it, but only the motion sensors had picked anything up. Frustrated by the lack of results, she decided to head down into the mine tunnels herself to see if she could find anything. Princess Bubblegum had been wandering the mine tunnels for close to an hour by now and hadn’t found so much as a single footprint. She let out a frustrated sigh as she trudged further into the mines, tapping her laser gun impatiently. Just as she was about to give up her search a loud clang reverberated throughout the tunnel as something metal hit the mine-cart tracks.

“Who’s there?!” Bonnibel shouted. “Reveal yourself at once! You are trespassing on Candy Kingdom property!”

Bubblegum spun around, desperately checking her scanner for a heat signature but nothing was showing up. “What the glob is wrong with this thing!” she cursed.

An eerie, high-pitched laugh echoed throughout the tunnel, causing Princess Bubblegum to freeze in her tracks. She pointed her flashlight farther down the tunnel, but it was still just as empty as before. 

Bubblegum pointed her laser gun at the empty tunnel, “I will use this thing if I have to!” she yelled again.

The haunting laugh filled the chamber once again. This time a disconnected voice spoke from the darkness, “Don’t worry, Princess. I’m not here to hurt you. Just having a little fun”.

Princess Bubblegum stepped further into the tunnel. The light from her flashlight glinted across a metal spray can on the ground. She picked up the can and turned it over in her hand, it was white spray paint. “Who the math are you and why are you stealing rock candy from the mines?”, she shouted down the tunnel.

The voice laughed again, “Sorry about the rock candy, Princess. I didn’t think you’d mind if I had a little snack. Red rock candy is pretty delicious, and it didn't seem like you were using it”. 

Something soft brushed the top of Bubblegum’s head. She whipped around, shining her flashlight towards the ceiling in an attempt to reveal whatever had been there. The light illuminated a giant bat-like creature hanging from the ceiling. It sprung off the ceiling and lunged toward Princess Bubblegum as soon as the light fell on it. Bubblegum dropped into a roll a fired a few shots over her shoulder. A pained screech filled the chamber as one of the shots made contact with the creature. Bubblegum looked behind her to see the the large bat fall to the ground and shrink into a humanoid form. A girl with pale gray skin, long black hair, and fangs protruding from her mouth was hunched over in the dirt clutching her shoulder.

“What the jam, Princess!” the girl shouted.

“Well, like I said, you’re trespassing on Candy Kingdom property. Now, who the glob are you?” Bubblegum demanded, stepping closer to the girl. As she moved closer Princess Bubblegum noticed that the wound on the girl’s shoulder was healing rapidly. She also noticed the two red dots on the girl’s lower neck.

“Well,” the strange girl crooned, “The name’s Marceline. But you probably know me better as The Vampire Queen”. A mischievous grin spread across Marceline’s face, revealing a row of pointed teeth.

Princess Bubblegum gulped. The Vampire Queen was the last thing she was expecting to find in the tunnels of her old rock candy mine. She tightened her grip on her blaster, unsure of what to expect from someone with such a … mixed reputation.

“Well, Marceline. What business could the Vampire Queen possibly have in the tunnels of my rock candy mine?”

Marceline rolled her eyes, “Relax, Princess. I was just looking for a place to get out of the sun for a bit. Plus, the walls down here are the perfect canvas for my art”. Marceline winked at Princess Bubblegum as she floated up into the air above her. Princess Bubblegum tried to say something to stop her but something about the vampire’s demeanor had her tongue tied for the first time in her life. The smug vampire spun around in the air above Bubblegum’s head before chipping a piece of red rock candy off the ceiling of the tunnel. Marceline bit into the rock and slowly sucked every last bit of red out of it.

She tossed the drained piece of rock onto the tracks, “Thanks for the snack, Bubblegum. Let’s do this again sometime soon”. Marceline drifted down the tunnel away from Bubblegum, who was frozen in place.

“Wait!” Princess Bubblegum finally blurted out, “Wait! You’re trespassing and stealing Candy Kingdom property!”

Bubblegum tried to chase after her for a bit but realized she was far gone by now. Bubblegum let out a sigh and placed her hands on her knees. She’d have to increase security and close off these tunnels if Marceline was going to keep coming around. She had no idea what Marceline was capable of and what her intentions were. While she was intrigued by the vampire and her powers, the safety of her kingdom was paramount. As Princess Bubblegum exited the tunnels and walked back toward the castle all she could think about was the mysterious vampire. Hopefully she comes back soon...


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Princess Bubblegum contemplates how to move forward after her encounter with the Vampire Queen so that she can defend her kingdom. Marceline, however, isn't very happy with the decisions she makes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I had a lot of fun writing this so I decided to continue this! This will most likely end up being a multi-chapter, slow burn, enemies to friends to lovers fic, but honestly I'm not too sure where it's going to wind up. I hope you enjoy this and please leave Kudos or comments if you do!

Princess Bubblegum swung open the door to her laboratory in a huff. A mischievous vampire hanging around her rock candy mines was the last thing she needed right now. Her banana guards were still far too weak and nervous to deal with any sort of real threat like a vampire and the new formula was months from being finished. The Gumball Guardians could stand a chance against Marceline, but Bubblegum had no idea what she was truly capable. She had only heard rumors of Marceline’s powers and she had no idea how to effectively prepare against any of them. 

 

“Peppermint Butler!” she called out into the lab. After a few seconds she heard some shuffling in the back of the lab and saw her trustworthy assistant emerge from behind some boxes. 

 

“Princess? Did you find anything down in the mines?”

 

“Yeah, I did. The glib globbing Vampire Queen!” Princess Bubblegum tossed her heat scanner and laser gun onto the counter in frustration. She scanned over her construction plans that had been laid out across the lab. She would have to find a way to increase her defenses quickly if Marceline planned to keep hanging around.

 

Peppermint Butler’s eyes widened, “Th-The Vampire Queen? As in  _ The _ Vampire Queen? What on Ooo is she doing around here?”

 

“I have no idea but she can’t possibly be up to anything good. She was just creeping around down there spray painting the walls and sucking all the red out of the rock candy. We’ll have to seal off the other entrances to the mine.”

 

Peppermint Butler was staring off into the distance with a look of reverence in his eyes. “Do you think she’ll let me have her autograph?” he whispered.

 

Princess Bubblegum sighed in frustration, “Peppermint Butler! This is serious! Marceline could pose a very real threat to our kingdom if we don’t do anything!”

 

Bubblegum slumped down into a lab chair and ran her hand through her hair. As much as she was concerned for the safety and prosperity of her kingdom she was also extremely intrigued by the vampire. She had so many questions about vampirism and all of her abilities. Maybe learning more about vampirism could give her more insight into her candy immortality formula. The rational part of her wanted Marceline to stay as far away as possible but some other part of her was desperate to see the mysterious vampire again.

 

Peppermint Butler cleared his throat, “My apologies, Princess. I’ll seal off all the entrances to the mine other than the one inside the kingdom. You should get some rest.”

 

She nodded her head, “Thank you. And don’t worry about me. I’ll head to sleep after I finish reviewing the construction plans.”

 

Her kingdom had come such a long way since its creation, but there was still a lot of progress to be made. She would have to expand the castle even more if she planned to continue keeping Neddy in there, he was growing faster every day. There were also so many more buildings that needed to be constructed in order to house the growing population of candy citizens as well as the exterior walls that needed strengthening. As curious as she was about this vampire, she had to put her kingdom first. After making numerous revisions to her construction plans she eventually dozed off in her lab chair.

  
  


~

 

Bubblegum jolted upright and spun around in her lab chair. The room was pitch black. Peppermint Butler must have turned the lights to the lab off after he returned. She sighed and rubbed her eyes. She really needed to stop falling asleep in the lab. She got up from her chair and started fumbling around for the light switch. A strange scratching sound coming from the corner of the room froze her in her tracks. 

 

“S-science?” her voice quavered, “Is that you?”

 

She started moving toward the light switch again but was stopped when she felt something glide past her. Marceline. How did she get in here? She frantically started fumbling around the lab, looking for something to defend herself with. She caught sight of her laser gun and lunged toward it. She nearly had a grip on it when she felt something large slam into her. The same eerie laugh that she heard in the mines earlier filled the lab. Hands with sharp claws pinned her to the ground and in the darkness she could make out the vampire looming over her.

 

The vampire sneered, “Sealing off the tunnels, Princess? Really? That was just rude.”

 

Bubblegum gulped, “What else did you expect me to do? I don’t need someone like you lurking underneath my city.”

 

Marceline rolled her eyes, “I was just looking for a place to get out of the sun. I wasn’t planning on causing you any trouble. But plans can change.”

 

“I will find a way to destroy you if I have to. I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure my kingdom is safe,” Bubblegum growled at the vampire.

 

Marceline grinned, “Pretty confident for someone who’s totally at my mercy. I think you’re going to regret that decision, Princess.” 

 

“I guess we’ll have to find out, won’t we?” Princess Bubblegum wrenched her arm out of Marceline’s grip and slapped her watch against the ground. She heard a button click and, before Marceline had a chance to react, a jolt of electricity leaped from her wrist and shocked the vampire. Marceline jumped off of Princess Bubblegum, clutching her face. Bubblegum had just enough time to scramble towards her laser blaster and aim it at the surprised vampire.

 

“This isn’t over,” Marceline hissed. The vampire disappeared right before Bubblegum’s eyes. She kept her blaster aimed ahead of her for a few seconds until she finally thought it was safe. Bubblegum sat on the floor panting for a few moments. Marceline was even more dangerous and unpredictable than she had originally thought. As curious as she was about this vampire she had to set her feelings aside and do what was best for her kingdom. If she couldn’t increase the kingdom’s defenses soon Glob only knows what kind of destruction Marceline could cause to the development of her kingdom. 

 

The light tapping of footsteps in the hallway snapped Bubblegum out of her thoughts. She aimed her gun at the doorway, prepared for another fight with Marceline. Peppermint Butler appeared in the doorway, wielding a dagger a bit too large for his small stature. Peppermint Butler dropped his dagger and ran over to her.

 

“Princess! Are you okay? I-I heard a commotion in the lab and came as quickly as I could.”

 

“I’m fine, Pep. Marceline came back a-and told me I was going to regret sealing the tunnels off.”

 

“Oh dear, that’s not good.”

 

Bubblegum sighed, “Not at all. We need to start preparing defenses immediately. Prepare for everything. We have no idea what she could do next. We’ll have to install upgraded sensors on the Gumball Guardians and brief the Banana Guards on defense strategies and-“

 

“Princess,” Peppermint Butler interrupted her, “I’ll take care of preparations right now. You need to rest. We can discuss upgrading our defenses in the morning. I’ll send some guards to stand outside the door. Come on, up up!” 

 

Bubblegum yawned, “Thanks, Pep. I don’t know what I would do without you. I’ll see you first thing in the morning.”

 

Peppermint Butler lead her back up to her room and made sure that she was securely tucked into her bed. As soon as she hit the soft cushions she felt sleep begin to grip her. Her mind, however, kept wandering back to Marceline. Why hadn’t the vampire killed her earlier? She certainly had several opportunities to rip her to shreds if she had wanted to. Yet she didn’t. Somehow that thought didn’t help Bubblegum sleep any easier. If she wasn’t here to kill her or rob her of what she had then what was her goal? Stopping someone with no clear directive wouldn’t be easy. She would have to learn more about Marceline if she was going to find a way to stop her. Bubblegum sighed and buried her face into her pillow. Why couldn’t she ever catch a break? She knew building a kingdom was going to be difficult but Glob, why did someone always have to be janking up her business? Couldn’t she just have a few years where everyone left her the math alone? Bubblegum ran her hand through her hair, trying to relax. Marceline was just another threat. She could deal with her just like all the other ding dongs who tried to jank up her kingdom. She and Peppermint Butler would figure something out and the morning and then Marceline would never bother her again. Just another threat. Nothing more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this please leave a Kudos and/or a comment.
> 
> Twitter @mcgay_j


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bubblegum and Peppermint Butler prepare for another visit from The Vampire Queen and Princess Bubblegum realizes there might be more to Marceline's motives than she originally thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I hope you enjoy this chapter! I'm going to try to update this as much as possible, but I would expect updates every other week or so. Please leave a comment and kudos if you enjoy!

Princess Bubblegum walked through the streets of the Candy Kingdom, surveying the construction of some new apartments to house more candy citizens. Bubblegum rubbed her hands together anxiously. It had been months since Marceline had pinned her down in her laboratory and the vampire hadn’t been spotted anywhere near the Candy Kingdom in all that time. Bubblegum hadn’t slept well in ages, she just couldn’t shake the feeling that Marceline could pop up at any moment and derail all of her plans. Even with the Gumball Guardians’ upgraded defenses she wasn’t sure if they would be able to stop Marceline. Peppermint Butler had developed some anti-vampire weapons but the Banana Guards were fairly incompetent at actually putting them to use. Despite Peppermint Butler’s efforts to convince her otherwise, Bubblegum knew that the threat had not been averted. Marceline was biding her time, and she knew that the longer she waited the more anxious Bubblegum would get. 

 

“Princess!” one of the construction workers called out, interrupting her train of thought.

 

“Yes?” she responded as she walked over to the construction area.

 

“Come look! We’ve finished installing the reinforced windows and we’re nearly done now. Should only take a week or more of construction.”

 

“It looks excellent!” Bubblegum smiled. 

 

She’d been taking this opportunity to reinforce all the buildings, anything she could do to stand a chance against Marceline. Despite her anxieties about the vampire, construction within the kingdom had been going really well. She was finally starting to see her grand vision for the kingdom come together. The infrastructure of the kingdom was expanding exactly on schedule and soon she’d be able to incorporate more candy citizens and start building businesses. She’d also been working on a new formula for the Banana Guards. Something that would hopefully make them slightly more effective at their one job. Bubblegum meandered through the streets of her budding kingdom, contemplating the next steps in her plan. She greeted the Banana Guards at the door to her castle and made her way up towards her laboratory. She wanted to review Peppermint Butler’s work on the anti-vampire defense measures he had been drawing up. She opened the door to the laboratory to find Peppermint Butler hunched over a strange looking glass device. 

 

Peppermint Butler smiled as Princess Bubblegum entered the room, “Princess! How is the construction coming along?”

 

“Good, we’re nearly finished with the first apartment building. How is everything coming along in here? Still no reports of Marceline?”

 

Peppermint Butler sighed, “Unfortunately no. Until we find a more effective way to track her while she’s invisible I’m afraid it might stay that way. Luckily I believe I have developed a solution that will allow everyone to protect themselves should she attack the city.”

 

“Alright, Pep. Show me what you got,” Bubblegum sat down across from him. Peppermint Butler hopped down from the counter, stepping away from the contraption he had been working on. He walked into the supply closet and returned with a cardboard box nearly the size of him. He dropped the box onto the ground and pulled out a length of black cloth.

 

“Ta-da!” He held the strip of black cloth above his head.

 

Bubblegum looked puzzled, “A blindfold? How exactly is that supposed to help against Marceline?”

 

“I know it’s probably not the solution you were hoping for, but this is the best thing we can do for the candy people. You know that when they get too stressed they explode. The best we can do for them is to cover their eyes and make them think everything is alright. There’s no way they can stand a chance against anything like that.”

 

Bubblegum sighed, “You’re right. I just don’t want any of them to get hurt. Is there anything more we can do? I just feel like we need to do more.”

 

“Well,” Peppermint Butler grinned, “I have designed this to be added to the Gumball Guardians. It should help deter Marceline.” Peppermint Butler held up the large device, which resembled a giant spray can. 

 

“It’s a giant garlic spray can!” he announced, “We can attach it to the Gumball Guardians and they can use it as a deterrent. It should help us get a more accurate shot on her.”

 

“And you’re sure this will work?”

 

“Not at all, but I think it’s the best chance we’ve got for now. We need to learn more about her abilities before we can prepare against them.”

 

Bubblegum sighed, “I just hate feeling like such a sitting duck. Everything is so out of control and as much as I try it feels like nothing I do is fixing it. I just need everything to go according to plan.”

 

“Don’t worry, Princess. We’ll figure this out. Nothing has managed to stop you yet. Let’s go install these on the Gumball Guardians before it gets dark outside. Then we can pass out the blindfolds to everyone as well.”

 

“Alright,” Princess Bubblegum frowned. Peppermint Butler seemed optimistic about their chances against Marceline but Bubblegum wasn’t quite as positive that things would go well. Marceline was a threat unlike any they had faced before. The Bath Boys, while dangerous, were just a bunch of thugs and she had figured out how to eradicate them without much issue. Marceline was powerful and unpredictable, but if science has taught her anything it’s that there is a solution to every problem as long as you work hard enough. She was not going to let Marceline intimidate her. These garlic spray cans would work and then they could catch Marceline and destroy her and everything would be back on track.

 

~

 

A blaring alarm pulled Princess Bubblegum out of her sleep. She rubbed her eyes and looked around her bedroom frantically, red lights were flashing throughout the castle and the rest of the kingdom. The Gumball Guardians’ voices pierced the air, warning the kingdom of an intruder. She was here. After nearly six months she had finally decided to return. Princess Bubblegum cursed under her breath and jumped out of her bed. She grabbed her laser gun from underneath her bed and ran to her wardrobe to fetch the stake launcher that Peppermint Butler had designed. She slung the stake launcher across her back and ran over to the window to see what was happening. Several towers of smoke rose from the city and she could see rubble scattered across the streets. 

 

“Gumball Guardian!” she called out from the window. One of the large guardians turned to face her and started making its way toward the castle. The other was preoccupied trying to extinguish the various fires that had started around the kingdom.

 

“Yes, mother?” the Gumball Guardian asked as he approached the window.

 

“Pick me up! We need to find Marceline before it’s too late.” 

 

The Gumball Guardian extended his hand toward the window and Princess Bubblegum jumped on top of it. The Gumball Guardian placed Princess Bubblegum on his shoulder and started walking through the kingdom. Bubblegum looked around and saw candy citizens with their blindfolds on cowering inside the buildings. She saw others lying in the street, all of the red drained from their candy bodies. She felt anger boiling up inside of her at the sight of her wounded citizens. How could Marceline do this? All over some rock candy? There had to be more to it than that. She scanned the kingdom for any sign of Marceline. All she needed to do was get a shot on her and scare her off again. She saw a cluster of banana guards round a corner, screaming and running from something. 

 

“Princess! Princess!” they shouted, “Monster! Help us!”

 

“Over there!” she ordered the Gumball Guardian. As they rounded the corner she could see the remains of exploded candy people in the street. The buildings over here had been mostly destroyed somehow. Marceline must be extremely strong as well. The more she learned about her foe, the more formidable she became. Bubblegum was determined to avenge her fallen citizens, however, and was not going to let Marceline scare her off. As she drew closer she could hear Marceline’s chilling laugh floating through the streets. Bubblegum squinted her eyes, looking for any sign of Marceline in the streets below her. Out of the corner of her she saw a dark shadow dart across the street. Princess Bubblegum whipped out her laser gun and started firing in the direction of the shadow rapidly. Burn marks from the lasers littered the ground where the shadow had been, but none of her shots had made contact.

 

“Marceline!” Princess Bubblegum shouted. “Show yourself you coward!”

 

“Don’t worry, Princess.” Bubblegum heard Marceline laugh from behind her. “I’m right here.”

 

Princess Bubblegum felt sharp claws dig into her back and push her from the Gumball Guardian’s shoulder. Before she knew it she was tumbling to the ground, grasping for something to hold on to. Princess Bubblegum closed her eyes and braced herself for impact with the street. Instead of coming into contact with the ground, however, Bubblegum felt someone’s arms catch her. Princess Bubblegum opened her eyes to see Marceline smirking at her. Marceline was holding Bubblegum in her arms as they floated above the street.

 

“Missed me?” Marceline smirked. Bubblegum sat in her arms for a few moments, utterly bewildered by the vampire’s behavior. What on Ooo was she playing at?

 

“Hardly,” Princess Bubblegum spat before wrenching herself out of Marceline’s grasp and dropping onto the street below her. She reached for her laser gun only to find that it wasn’t attached to her belt. 

 

“Looking for this?” Marceline twirled the laser gun around her fingers. Bubblegum lunged toward Marceline in an attempt to retrieve her laser gun but the vampire floated just out of her reach. “Aren’t you having fun, Princess?”

 

“Fun?” Princess Bubblegum said in shock, “You murdered my people! Why the math would I be having fun!”

 

Marceline’s face suddenly grew serious, “I didn’t murder them. I just drained the red from them, they’ll be fine.”

 

“Candy people explode when they get scared! You killed them!” Bubblegum shouted.

 

“No!” Marceline’s face grew angry. The vampire pulled the trigger on the laser gun and fired a few shots towards Princess Bubblegum. Bubblegum rolled out of the way but one of the shots connected with her arm. Some of the bubblegum had disintegrated and there was a rather large hole in her left arm. 

 

“Spray her! Now!” Princess Bubblegum shouted at the Gumball Guardian. The garlic spray can Peppermint Butler had created popped out of the Gumball Guardian’s shoulder and it directed the spray directly at the vampire. The garlic spray fell on Marceline and her skin began to bubble up as she screamed in agony. Princess Bubblegum grabbed the stake launcher from behind her back and prepared to aim.

 

“Net! Net!” she shouted at the Gumball Guardian. It directed its hand toward the wounded vampire and a large rope net launched itself from its hand. The net fell on top of Marceline, who was still recovering from the garlic spray, and pulled her to the ground. Princess Bubblegum aimed her stake launcher at the wounded creature but hesitated before she pulled the trigger. Something about Marceline was … off. The way she seemed upset when she learned that the candy people had exploded, and she had caught her before she fell to the ground. She couldn’t just be evil, there had to be some other motivation for what she was doing. It didn’t make any sense. Nothing she was doing made sense. 

 

Before Bubblegum could pull the trigger Marceline began to grow bigger, breaking the ropes that held her down. The vampire transformed into a gigantic bat-like creature, far bigger than the one she had seen when they had first met down in the rock candy mines. Marceline locked eyes with Bubblegum, staring at her intently. The large creature flapped its giant wings and took off into the sky. 

 

“L-Leave the Candy Kingdom alone!” Bubblegum shouted as Marceline flew away. Bubblegum wanted to chase after her and stop her but she remained frozen in place. Maybe there was more to this vampire than she originally thought.

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed this please leave a comment and follow me on Twitter @mcgay_j !


End file.
